Just before the Hermes parade rolled Friday night, a parade-goer suffered a seizure and went into cardiac arrest on St. Charles Avenue near Napoleon. His heart stopped beating after he collapsed on the neutral ground, according to a first responder.

A doctor in the crowd started CPR and a first aid worker from a nearby Red Cross First Aid Station used a single shock from an automatic defibrillator to restart the man's heart.

Eight paramedics in two sprint cars and an ambulance from New Orleans EMS arrived on the scene in less than one minute and the man was taken to a nearby hospital in unknown condition but breathing and with a heartbeat.

As the ambulance drove away, Mardi Gras parade-goers applauded the first responders as the first units of Hermes began to roll.